Microsoft releases Outlook app for iOS and Android

Microsoft has announced the availability of Outlook for iOS devices, and a preview of Outlook for Android. It was also announced that Office is now available for free on Android tablets.

Outlook and Office will be available for free for personal use from the App Store and Google Play. However, businesses who want commercial use rights of Outlook will need an Office 365 subscription.

Outlook for iOS and Android will replace the OWA (Outlook Web App) for iPhone, iPad and Android apps, however, Microsoft says businesses who want features such as IRM should continue to use the OWA for Devices experience on phones and tablets for the near term.

These advanced features will be coming to Outlook on iOS and Android in the coming months, Microsoft says.

The new Outlook app brings together tools such as email, calendar, contacts and files. It works with all major email services (including Outlook.com, Exchange Server, Office 365, Yahoo, and Gmail).

Microsoft also announced Office for Android tablets is now available to download from the Google Play store.

A number of Office apps and features have been specifically designed and built for the Android platform, for example Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps have been designed for touch devices.

Consumers with an eligible Office 365 subscription will have access to full editing features and OneDrive or DropBox storage.

Commercial Office 365 subscribers will have the ability to save their documents to commercial storage (OneDrive for Business, DropBox for Business and SharePoint), use enterprise-grade security, IT management tools like MDM for Office 365, and the latest business features and functionality, including commercial use rights.

All other users will be able to create and print documents and perform core editing functions free of charge, says Microsoft.